hyperkeratosis

noun

hy·​per·​ker·​a·​to·​sis ˌhī-pər-ˌker-ə-ˈtō-səs 

plural hyperkeratoses ˌhī-pər-ˌker-ə-ˈtō-ˌsēz 

: hypertrophy of the corneous layer of the skin

hyperkeratotic

ˌhī-pər-ˌker-ə-ˈtä-tik 

adjective

Examples of hyperkeratosis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

However, some do, including actinic hyperkeratosis. —Mark Gurarie, Health, 5 July 2024

Depending on the type, hyperkeratosis can be reversible. —Mark Gurarie, Health, 5 July 2024

Roughly 40% of dogs suffer from paw pad hyperkeratosis, a condition characterized by thickened and hardened paw pads. —Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 5 Nov. 2023

An infected frog then develops hyperkeratosis, a thickening of the keratin layer of the skin that inhibits water and oxygen from being absorbed. —Rachel Crowell, Quanta Magazine, 17 Apr. 2023

Not only can weather changes and hyperkeratosis affect your pooch’s paws, but these conditions can affect their noses as well. —Nicole Forsyth, The Mercury News, 5 Sep. 2019

Or your dog may have a genetic condition called hyperkeratosis that makes their paws and noses vulnerable to becoming dry. —Nicole Forsyth, The Mercury News, 5 Sep. 2019

Soften Up Don’t overlook the rest of your hands: Rough patches on the palms can be remedied using a callus softener like Deborah Lippmann’s Get Off, which uses lactic acid to break down hyperkeratosis (thickening of the skin). —Donna Bulseco, WSJ, 2 May 2018

Word History

Etymology

earlier as a name for keratoconus (conical distortion of the cornea), borrowed from New Latin (in a German context), from hyper- hyper- + Greek kerat-, kéras "horn" + New Latin -osis -osis — more at kerato-

Note: As an ophthalmological term introduced by the German ophthalmologist Karl Himly (1772-1837) in Bibliothek für Ophthalmologie, 1. Band, 2. Stück (Hannover, 1819), p. 401.

First Known Use

1841, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

hyperkeratosis

noun

hy·​per·​ke·​ra·​to·​sis -ˌker-ə-ˈtō-səs 

plural hyperkeratoses -ˈtō-ˌsēz 

1

: hypertrophy of the stratum corneum layer of the skin

2

a

: any of various conditions marked by hyperkeratosis

b

: a disease of cattle that is marked by thickening and wrinkling of the hide, by formation of papillary outgrowths on the buccal mucous membranes, and often by a watery discharge from eyes and nose, diarrhea, loss of weight, and abortion of pregnant animals and that is caused especially by ingestion of the chlorinated naphthalene of various lubricating oils, by arsenic poisoning, or by inherited congenital ichthyosis

called also X-disease, XX disease

hyperkeratotic

-ˈtät-ik 

adjective